Tzadkiel's form

Lee · 16 Sep 2014, 12:01 · from 2014-September.txt.gz

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From: severiansola at hotmail.com (Lee)
Date: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 08:01:51 -0400
Subject: (urth) Tzadkiel's form
Message-ID: <BLU175-W112818FD1BCD25D73F5918CFC90 at phx.gbl>

>larry miller: Mind Blown!
>Is Hethor introduced in the same chapter as Jonah? If Im right this is also
>where Jonah tells the story of the "beans" too.  The idea that Typhon was
>on the Ship could be huge.  If he originally was a lifeform akin to
>Tzadkiel, this would certainly line up with Wolfes naming schema that any
>mythological name indicates an alien origin.

Hethor is first introduced, (though not by name) at Agilus' execution. At

first he seems just one of several sadists who deeply enjoy watching executions.

Later, in the antechamber and beyond, Hethor makes it clear that he worships

Severian, insistently calling  him "Master" and "my Master".

But later, when Severian meets Jonah, he notices that Hethor disappears and there

is an implication that Hethor doesn't want to be recognized by his fellow-

Shipmate. Moreover, Severian sees characters who resemble both Hethor and 

Jonah later on Tzadkiel's Ship.

There is the naming convention where mythological names are used for aliens

(or more broadly, Greco-Roman names as for Inire, Cumaean, Barbatus, 

Famulimus and Ossipago). Regarding Hethor, we are cryptically told by 

Agia that:

>"His name isn't really Hethor, by the way.  He says it's a much older one, that hardly

>anyone has heard of now." 

Why does Hethor go on and on about Severian being his Master and seeming to

worship him, but then later try to kill him? Perhaps the worship was all an act but

I sometimes think Hethor wasn't really trying to kill Severian. Perhaps, being who

he is, Hethor was actually the first to recognize what Severian truly was, and his beasts

were more of a series of godhood tests rather than true assassination attempts.

In UotNS, on Yesod, Tzadkiel mentions that he had been Severian's acolyte in a previous

iteration. Does this mean he was hidden among the throngs who follow Severian when he

is the Conciliator? Or perhaps is Tzadkiel the ancient name which hardly anyone has heard

of?

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